Chapter 53 Unexpected Changes: He Leaned Down and Kissed Deeper
"What should we do now?" Ji Huaiyi asked.
The crimson arrowhead that pierced my cousin was a gift from the Crown Prince years ago.
But Chen Song is dead, and no one can guarantee that the goods ultimately ended up in the hands of the Crown Prince.
And now, another third prince has emerged.
Even if Ji Huaiyi were completely clueless, he could still figure out that the Third Prince might be involved in Zhou Ziyang's death.
His eyes burned with barely suppressed rage. Back then, when the Sheng Dynasty was beset by internal and external troubles, they, the ministers, were defending the country on the frontier, while these pampered princes and nobles were abusing their power in the capital.
That would have been one thing, but their infighting even extended to the border, turning loyal and devoted officials who served the country and its people into stepping stones for their rise to power.
Thinking of how the Zhou family has dwindled to almost nothing and how Zhou's mother has fled to Pingwan to escape disaster, Ji Huaiyi felt an uncontrollable surge of anger within him.
Shen Yun picked up the letter on the table, set it on fire, and didn't say much, only reminding him, "You must take good care of the account books."
Right now, his every move is under the watchful eye of the Third Prince, so we can't afford to alert him.
Ji Huaiyi stared at the flickering flames, the sparks burning fiercely in his eyes. He clenched his fists, his jawline tensed, and his expression was unusually stern.
-
As early spring arrives, the snow melts.
The servants of the Duke's mansion were clearing the snow from the pine and cypress trees. The spring sun peeked through the gaps in the clouds, adding a touch of warmth to the air.
Lin Shutang sat on the veranda, and unusually, he set up a stove to brew tea.
The bright sunlight fell on her, making her drowsy. The words in the book in her hand gradually blurred before her eyes. Lin Shutang was about to fall asleep in the rocking chair when she heard a servant report that Madam Ji had arrived.
Lin Shutang had someone invite him in.
Zhao Mingzhu's eyes were red as she sat down opposite Lin Shutang, tears still streaming down her face.
"What happened?" Zhao Mingzhu rarely showed this side of herself. Lin Shutang's drowsiness vanished instantly. She quickly poured her a cup of hot tea and warmed her cold palms.
"I knew it! That's why Ji Huaiyi was always leaving early and returning late all that time. It turns out he was investigating the truth behind General Zhou's death. Today, he actually used some secret letters and account books from who-knows-where to openly impeach His Highness the Third Prince in court."
Zhao Mingzhu's breathing became increasingly rapid as she spoke, and tears streamed down her face like broken pearls. "His Majesty was furious and ordered the Ministry of Revenue to retrieve the account books from that year, but they didn't match at all. On the contrary, it also implicated General Zhou in embezzling grain and salary. Ji Huaiyi didn't want his cousin to be disgraced even after his death, so he had no choice but to accept the serious crime of slandering the prince."
"Now that His Majesty has demoted him to the position of Deputy Envoy of the Northern Frontier Pacification Commission, he should go to the Northern Frontier immediately without delay." By the end, Zhao Mingzhu was already sobbing uncontrollably.
The tea was boiling, and Lin Shutang's mind went completely blank.
Is there no room for maneuver?
“No.” Zhao Mingzhu shook her head. “I came here today not because I still had any expectations. If the young master had a way, the Emperor’s decree would not have reached the Ji family and my ears.”
“Since he has been demoted from the capital, I will naturally go with him to the northern frontier. I have come to say goodbye to you.” Zhao Mingzhu put down her teacup and wiped the tears from her face with a handkerchief.
"Shutang, I don't know when we'll meet again."
Zhao Mingzhu stood up, and Lin Shutang followed suit. She held her hand and said, "I used to think that Ji Huaiyi and I were a matchmaker arranged by our parents. Even if we weren't a loving couple, I would be satisfied with mutual respect. But after this incident, I realized that if you compromise even for a moment, does that mean that person was worthwhile for a moment?"
“I don’t blame Ji Huaiyi. He had his own reasons for doing it. Even if those reasons would result in the sacrifice of many people, I think he was probably just as pained as I was. Because none of us could predict what kind of situation we would face after taking that step.”
“I think this trip to the northern frontier will temper his arrogance.” Her gaze fell on the beam of light shining down from the eaves behind Lin Shutang, her eyes filled with tears, revealing a firm and fearless expression.
Lin Shutang felt that her hand was holding his tightly, but it loosened after a moment and she was no longer trembling.
She snapped out of her daze and looked at her, the redness in her eyes fading, and smiled at her.
After Zhao Mingzhu left, Lin Shutang found it difficult to calm down.
Perhaps because her life had been relatively uneventful over the years, Ji Huaiyi's situation was truly beyond her expectations.
Thinking back to how Madam Zhou saw her and the strange things she said.
Immediately afterwards, she heard from Zhao Mingzhu that Ji Huaiyi had been mysteriously leaving early and returning late during that period.
Now, it turns out that he was investigating the true cause of General Zhou's death.
Lin Shutang felt unconsciously that something was revolving around her, yet it also felt like someone was deliberately excluding her.
She was as if she were standing inside a transparent glass cup; she could clearly see the outside world, and people outside could clearly see her as well.
But the voices of those people were completely shut out by the glass lamp.
What was it that she was unaware of?
Lin Shutang was restless all day, so he simply went to the outside of the hanging flower gate to wait for Shen Yun to finish his shift.
She stood under the door, pacing back and forth. Seeing that it was still early, her anxiety grew even stronger.
Green Willow suggested bringing Lin Shutang a chair to sit down, but Lin Shutang did not agree.
She just kept kicking the pebbles under her feet, the confusion in her heart like the clouds on a stormy day, and even her mood became listless.
It wasn't until evening that Shen Yun finished his shift.
Unexpectedly, he saw Lin Shutang standing under the hanging flower gate, and a look of surprise flashed in his calm eyes.
Lin Shutang stepped forward in a few strides. "I have something to tell you."
Her expression was serious. "Ji Huaiyi has really been demoted to the northern frontier?"
Shen Yun looked at her and nodded.
He reached out to take her hand and found that her palm was cold from the wind, so he tightened his grip and walked into the yard.
Lin Shutang, preoccupied with her own thoughts, didn't notice their palms touching. She obediently followed him, asking, "I heard from Zhao Mingzhu that it's because he produced a secret letter and an account book, but they don't match up with the Ministry of Revenue's records? What does that mean?"
Lin Shutang carefully recalled Zhao Mingzhu's words, but couldn't remember them very clearly.
Shen Yun said calmly, "The secret letter was found on the grain officer by a soldier in the grain transport team back then. Later, this soldier ended up in my hands."
“At first, he was very stubborn, but later he couldn’t withstand the torture and handed over the secret letter. The account book was given to me by Madam Zhou, and she organized it…” He paused here, “and took it out of his bosom when Zhou Ziyang’s body was found.”
"Ji Huaiyi thought that with witnesses and physical evidence in hand, he could convict the Third Prince of embezzling military funds and supplies, delaying military operations, and causing the defeat at the Battle of Black Pine Ridge. However, there were also people in the Ministry of Revenue who were under the Third Prince's control. They received advance notice and falsified the accounts, and the blame was shifted onto Zhou Ziyang. Ji Huaiyi had no choice but to plead guilty and frame the prince."
Shen Yun spoke these words with unexpected calmness, without a trace of extra emotion on his face, exuding an excessive composure.
Lin Shutang didn't know what he was thinking, but from his dark, forward-looking eyes, she could vaguely glimpse a suppressed melancholy. He hid it very well.
She stared at him, somewhat stunned, seemingly never expecting that Shen Yun would tell her such details, even revealing all the inside information.
Lin Shutang recalled that a few days ago, Song Ying said that Shen Yun would ruin the Third Prince's important plans.
So, is that all?
"On that day on the pleasure boat, Madam Zhou fell ill as soon as she saw me. She asked why I was still alive and whether she knew me..."
Lin Shutang's words caught in her throat before they were replaced by a gasp. As soon as Shen Yun entered the room, he picked her up and carried her in his arms. Lin Shutang immediately wrapped her arms around his neck and asked in shock, "What are you doing?"
"You didn't even notice your shoes and socks were wet?" Shen Yun placed her on the chaise lounge, squatted down, held her ankles, and removed her shoes and socks that were soaked with snow water.
She then felt that her feet were a little wet and cold, probably from kicking the pebbles earlier.
She wanted to ask more questions, but Shen Yun handed her some new white socks and put them on before speaking first, "Going to the Northern Frontier might not be a bad thing for Ji Huaiyi. With Zhao Mingzhu by his side, he'll have more leeway in his actions."
"You don't need to worry." After putting clean shoes and socks on her, he looked up and stared at Lin Shutang, something seeming to slip across his face.
Lin Shutang couldn't quite discern the fleeting emotion in her eyes, and replied, "Then can they go back to Yujing?"
"Perhaps." Shen Yun's voice was very soft. He looked up at Lin Shutang's bright red lips, leaned in and rubbed them against hers. As if he felt it wasn't enough, he stuck out his tongue and licked them again.
Lin Shutang leaned back and let out a soft moan as he was kissed. He pressed down on her, cupped the back of her head, and kissed her even more deeply.
As their breaths mingled, their clothes became disheveled. The room was filled with a warm, fragrant scent. A large expanse of Lin Shutang's fair skin was exposed on the side of her neck, gradually turning a blush. She grabbed at Shen Yun's clothes in front of her to prevent herself from slipping down.
Shen Yun's movements were slow, yet each one seemed very heavy.
Lin Shutang was like a fallen leaf, lifted up and then thrown down heavily in the wind. She seemed to be sinking into darkness, her limbs weak and powerless. She continued to sink in the darkness, letting the wind carry her wherever it wanted.
Occasionally she would open her eyes, and aside from the constantly swaying curtains, there were her dark eyes, misty and deep, like a pool of dripping water.
When he gazes at her silently, the dark currents churning in his eyes draw her in even deeper, and she is plunged into a gloomy atmosphere, with only the sound of his uneven, heavy breathing in her ears.
She drifted and sank endlessly in those waves...
Since Ji Huaiyi left Kyoto, Shen Yun seemed to have become particularly busy. Even after returning to Jingyuan Residence, he often stayed up late in his study with the lamp burning.
Lin Shutang often felt the bed sink behind him while he was half asleep, and then he was pulled into a warm embrace.
His hands, wrapped around her, would sometimes wander restlessly, tracing a path along her lower abdomen until she curled up her legs and couldn't help but let out a soft moan, at which point he would release the hem of her clothes.
He loved to be close to her neck, often burying his face there, his shallow breaths brushing against her skin, his fuzzy hair rubbing against her chin.
They can sleep soundly all night long.
When Lin Shutang woke up the next day, the space beside him was empty.
Lin Shutang got up and went to pay his respects to the old lady.
Unexpectedly, on the way back, they ran into Shen Xiuyan again.
After a long absence, he was now exceptionally spirited, even wearing the armor of the Divine Machine Battalion.
Upon hearing that Ji Huaiyi had left, the Emperor specially promoted him and appointed him to take over all of Ji Huaiyi's positions.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com